Been playing around with this new Wizard character. What do you think?
Roger Bacon 01
Male elf abjurer 1 (Advanced Player's Guide, Lost Omens Character Guide)
NG, Medium, Elf, Humanoid
Heritage ancient elf
Background field medic
Perception +5; low-light vision
Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, Elven, Kelish, Orcish
Skills Acrobatics +5, Arcana +7, Crafting +7, Deception +4, Diplomacy +4, Intimidation +4, Medicine +5, Society +7, Stealth +5, Warfare Lore +7
Str 10 (+0), Dex 14 (+2), Con 10 (+0), Int 18 (+4), Wis 14 (+2), Cha 12 (+1)
Items explorer’s clothing, crossbow (20 bolts), staff, alchemist's tools, backpack, basic crafter's book, batches of infused reagent, bedroll, chalks (10), Defensive Spellcasting, flint and steel, healer's tools, material component pouch, rations (1 week)s (2), rope (foot)s (50), soap, torchs (5), waterskin, writing set, familiar, money, purse (6 sp)
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AC 15; Fort +3; Ref +5; Will +7
HP 12
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Speed 35 feet
Melee [1] staff +3 (two-hand (1d8)), Damage 1d4 B
Ranged [1] crossbow +5 (range increment 120 feet, reload 1), Damage 1d8 P
Arcane Wizard Spells DC 17, attack +7; 1st feather fall, mage armor, magic weapon Cantrips (1st) daze, detect magic, electric arc, protect companion[SoM], tanglefoot, warp step
Focus Spells 1 Focus Point, DC 17; 1st Protective Ward
Ancestry Feats Elven Verve[LOCG], Nimble Elf
Class Feats Familiar
Skill Feats Alchemical Crafting, Battle Medicine
Other Abilities abjuration, advanced alchemy, arcane bond, arcane schools, arcane spellcasting, arcane thesis, extra reagents, familiar, improved familiar attunement, infused reagents, spellbook
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Pathfinder and associated marks and logos are trademarks of Paizo Inc., and are used under license.
Note: These builds use the Free Archetype and Gradual Ability Boosts options.
Here he is at 5th level:
Roger Bacon 05
Male elf abjurer 5 (Advanced Player's Guide, Lost Omens Character Guide)
NG, Medium, Elf, Humanoid
Heritage ancient elf
Background field medic
Perception +10 (+12 to initiative rolls); low-light vision
Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, Elven, Kelish, Orcish
Skills Arcana +11, Athletics +7, Crafting +13, Deception +9, Diplomacy +9, Elven Lore +11, Intimidation +9, Medicine +12, Nature +10, Religion +10, Society +11, Stealth +10, Warfare Lore +11
Str 10 (+0), Dex 16 (+3), Con 10 (+0), Int 19 (+4), Wis 16 (+3), Cha 14 (+2)
Items explorer’s clothing, +1 striking crossbow (20 bolts), +1 striking staff, lesser acid flasks (2), alchemist's tools, backpack, basic crafter's book, batches of infused reagent, bedroll, chalks (10), Defensive Spellcasting, flint and steel, healer's tools, lesser antidote, lesser antiplague, material component pouch, minor elixirs of life (2), rations (1 week)s (2), rope (foot)s (50), soap, sunrod, tindertwigs (5), torchs (5), wand of mage armor, waterskin, writing set, familiar, money, purse (5 pp, 5 gp, 6 sp)
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AC 20; Fort +7; Ref +12; Will +12
HP 36
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Speed 35 feet
Melee [1] +1 striking staff +8 (two-hand (1d8), magical), Damage 2d4 B
Ranged [1] +1 striking crossbow +11 (magical, range increment 120 feet, reload 1), Damage 2d8 P
Ranged [1] lesser acid flask +10 (thrown 20 ft., acid, alchemical, bomb, consumable, splash), Damage 1 A +1d6 pers A +1 A splash
Arcane Wizard Spells DC 21, attack +11; 3rd endure elements, glyph of warding, haste 2nd blur, darkvision, dispel magic, grim tendrils 1st alarm, feather fall, magic weapon, pet cache[APG] Cantrips (3rd) daze, detect magic, electric arc, protect companion[SoM], tanglefoot, warp step
Focus Spells 1 Focus Point, DC 21; 3rd Protective Ward
Ancestry Feats Elven Instincts[LOCG], Elven Lore, Elven Verve[LOCG], Nimble Elf
Class Feats Call Bonded Item[APG], Enhanced Familiar, Familiar, Quick Bomber
Free Archetype Feats Basic Concoction (Quick Bomber), Quick Alchemy
Skill Feats Alchemical Crafting, Assurance, Battle Medicine, Bon Mot[APG], Magical Crafting
Other Abilities abjuration, advanced alchemy, arcane bond, arcane schools, arcane spellcasting, arcane thesis, extra reagents, familiar, improved familiar attunement, infused reagents, quick alchemy, spellbook
Hero Lab and the Hero Lab logo are Registered Trademarks of LWD Technology, Inc. Free demo available at https://herolab.online
Pathfinder and associated marks and logos are trademarks of Paizo Inc., and are used under license.
Note: Alchemist Dedication at Level One, based on his Ancient Elf Heritage.
And again at tenth:
Roger Bacon 10
Male elf abjurer 10 (Advanced Player's Guide, Lost Omens Character Guide, Lost Omens Gods & Magic)
NG, Medium, Elf, Humanoid
Heritage ancient elf
Background field medic
Perception +16 (+18 to Sense Motive when trying to determine if a creature is under a controlling effect., +18 to initiative rolls); low-light vision
Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, Elven, Kelish, Orcish, Osiriani
Skills Acrobatics +15, Arcana +17, Athletics +12, Crafting +21, Deception +15, Diplomacy +15, Elven Lore +17, Intimidation +15, Medicine +20, Nature +16, Religion +16, Society +17, Stealth +15, Warfare Lore +17
Str 10 (+0), Dex 16 (+3), Con 12 (+1), Int 20 (+5), Wis 18 (+4), Cha 16 (+3)
Items explorer’s clothing, +2 striking crossbow (20 bolts), staff of abjuration, alchemist's tools, backpack, basic crafter's book, batches of infused reagent, bedroll, chalks (10), Defensive Spellcasting, flint and steel, ghost ammunition, healer's tools, lesser antidote, lesser antiplague, material component pouch, minor elixirs of life (2), rations (1 week)s (2), repair kit, rope (foot)s (50), silencing shot[GG], soap, sunrod, tindertwigs (5), torchs (5), wand of mage armor (4th level), waterskin, writing set, familiar, money, purse (1 pp, 6 gp, 1 sp)
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AC 26; Fort +16; Ref +18; Will +19; Successes vs. effects that would make you controlled are critical successes instead., +2 circumstance bonus vs. effects that would make you controlled
HP 76
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Speed 35 feet, climb 10 feet
Melee [1] staff of abjuration +13 (two-hand (1d8), abjuration, magical, staff), Damage 2d4 B
Ranged [1] +2 striking crossbow +17 (magical, range increment 120 feet, reload 1), Damage 2d8 P
Arcane Wizard Spells DC 29, attack +19; 5th banishment, black tentacles, darkvision, elemental form 4th blink, fly, stoneskin, stoneskin 3rd endure elements, glyph of warding, haste, wall of wind 2nd blur, darkvision, dispel magic, grim tendrils 1st alarm, feather fall, magic weapon, pet cache[APG] Cantrips (5th) daze, detect magic, electric arc, protect companion[SoM], tanglefoot, warp step
Focus Spells 1 Focus Point, DC 29; 5th Protective Ward
Ancestry Feats Ancestral Suspicion[APG], Elven Instincts[LOCG], Elven Lore, Elven Verve[LOCG], Nimble Elf, Tree Climber[APG]
Class Feats Bond Conservation, Call Bonded Item[APG], Efficient Alchemy, Enhanced Familiar, Familiar, Far Lobber, Quick Bomber, Quickened Casting, Steady Spellcasting
Free Archetype Feats Basic Concoction (Quick Bomber), Quick Alchemy, Advanced Concoction (Efficient Alchemy), Advanced Concoction (Far Lobber), Expert Alchemy
Skill Feats Advanced First Aid[APG], Alchemical Crafting, Assurance, Battle Medicine, Bless Tonic[LOGM], Bon Mot[APG], Continual Recovery, Magical Crafting, Ward Medic
Other Abilities abjuration, advanced alchemy, arcane bond, arcane schools, arcane spellcasting, arcane thesis, expert spellcaster, extra reagents, familiar, improved familiar attunement, infused reagents, quick alchemy, recall familiar, spellbook
Hero Lab and the Hero Lab logo are Registered Trademarks of LWD Technology, Inc. Free demo available at https://herolab.online
Pathfinder and associated marks and logos are trademarks of Paizo Inc., and are used under license.
One thing I haven't done yet is to work out what he should do with his infused reagents each day.
At tenth level his spellbook contains:
Cantrips: Acid Splash, Bullhorn, Chill Touch, Dancing Lights, Daze, Detect Magic, Electric Arc, Gale Blast, Ghost Sound, Mage Hand, Protect Companion, Shield, Tanglefoot, Warp Step
Level 1: Alarm, Feather Fall, Fleet Step, Grease, Grim Tendrils, Lock, Mage Armor, Magic Weapon, Pet Cache, Ray of Enfeeblement
Level 2: Blur, Darkvision, Dispel Magic, Endure Elements, Resist Energy
Level 3: Glyph of Warding, Haste, Stinking Cloud, Wall of Wind
Level 4: Blink, Dimensional Anchor, Fly, Spell Immunity, Stoneskin
Level 5: Banishment, Black Tentacles, Chromatic Wall, Elemental Form.
Been playing around with this new Wizard character. What do you think?
Seems like a pretty traditional wizard concept to me, with only the optional rules making him stand out all that much.
I'll be honest, I don't know anything about him! You've shown me his spells and what loot he'd drop when killed, but otherwise this... sure is a smart elf? I'm not sure if you're looking for character optimization advice or some other kind of feedback.
Damn. Lost what I'd written...
I suppose I should have started with a back story, but the impetus for this was an incomplete wizard guide I ran across that I thought had some interesting ideas (in particular that alchemist dedication is probably the best multiclass archetype for a wizard, at least according to this guide). So I jumped right into the character build. Also, not sure I'm anywhere near as good as Ravingdork at coming up with cool back stories. :-)
Not sure what kind of feedback, if any, I was looking for. Mostly I guess I just wanted to see what folks thought of the build. Not trying to min/max, just to make a reasonable character.
As for the optional rules, I hadn't tried the Gradual Ability Boosts before, and wanted to see what that would look like. I think I like it because it gives you boosts in secondary stats early, saving the primary (INT, in this case) boost for last because half the time it doesn't give anything useful (because it's not an even ability score, so not a +1 to the modifier).
I have tried free archetype before, and like it.
The other thing that's probably unusual about this guy is that he doesn't treat CHA as a dump stat. In fact it's his second priority after INT (so INT, CHA, WIS, DEX, CON, STR).
Owen K.C. Stephens posted on his blog recently about his preps for a new campaign he'll be running, and there's some stuff there about optional rules and house rules, some of which I liked and some about which I'm not sure. Anyway, that was another source for my musings on this wizard.
Oh, the other bit that got lost was about Mage Armor. In building this guy, I found that it seems most effective (and much cheaper) to rely on keeping Mage Armor in a slot so I can cast it during prep, except when I can build a wand of Mage Armor of the appropriate level and use that, allowing me to put some other spell in that slot for a while, rather than putting fundament runes on his armor. One interesting point, to me at least, is that you can build a wand for half what you could buy one for, and then when the time comes sell it for the amount you paid to build it. At least, that's how I read the rules on resales. Cost you some downtime days (or weeks, or months, I haven't worked that out yet).
One interesting point, to me at least, is that you can build a wand for half what you could buy one for, and then when the time comes sell it for the amount you paid to build it. At least, that's how I read the rules on resales. Cost you some downtime days (or weeks, or months, I haven't worked that out yet).
It's true that you can put crafting time into creating things, and thereby get them cheaper... but if you put that same downtime into a money-making action, you get money just as fast as the crafting will save it for you.
I'm not sure about selling old magical gear for full price. That's not how I would expect it to work.
Worth noting that if you want to save yourself that rune money, then you're going to have to cast up-leveled versions of mage armor. You also miss out on property runes.
Well, the idea was that the "retail price" of the item is the one given on the equipment or other appropriate table, and you can sell the item to the retailer for half of his retail price. How is he supposed to know whether you found it in a dungeon, stole it from a McMansion, bought it at full price, or made it at half price (also note that some crafters will pay full price because they don't want to spend the downtime).
Re: up-leveled versions of mage armor: yeah, I thought that was implicit in "of the appropriate level". And yeah, the property runes bit is unfortunate.